Frisco, Are You Ready For Some Football?

by friscowhistleblower | Mar 10, 2023 | 12 Cowboys Way, Campaign Donations, Campaign Finance Reports, Community Development Corp, Developements, Developers, Economic Development Corp, Jerry Jones, Jerry Jones - Blue Star Land, Jerry Jones - Dallas Cowboys, Politics, The Star

Click Bait is an eye-catching headline designed to entice a reader’s interest, so they click on a hyperlink that redirects them to some interesting or exciting content.  It can be innocent or sinister depending on how it is used. For example, you would likely click on a headline that read World Naked Gardening Day vs a headline like Weekend Gardner.  The headline is meant to drive traffic, therefore increasing readership or potential revenue from advertising.  So what did you think when you read the headline, “Frisco, are you ready for some football?” Surely after reading some of our blogs, you probably thought we might be about to drop some shady shit on the King Pins of Football, and you could be right.  As Jimmy Johnson would say, “how bout dem cowboys!”

Enigma is a person that is mysterious, difficult to understand, or hard to explain. For years at local watering holes (bars) in the DFW area, the Enigma of J.R. Ewing and Jerry Jones has often been talked about.  While we know J.R. is only a character in the hit show Dallas, the rise of Jerry Jones and his empire is very real!  Most know Jones for his ownership of America’s Team the Dallas Cowboys but there is much more to the billionaire businessman.  It has been reported that in the 1970s Jones made his first millions in oil.  In 2018, Jones became the controlling shareholder in Comstock Resources which is a publicly traded Texas oil and gas company.  In 2013, local TV news station WFAA reported Blue Star Land owned by Jones had at least 1200 acres across Frisco, Prosper, and Celina.  According to its website Blue Star Land and Development is a full-service real estate brokerage. Rex Real Estate brought the Jones family to Frisco in 1994 when they purchased the land for the master-planned community Starwood.  They have since developed two other communities with Star Creek in Allen, and Star Trail in Prosper.  Blue Star is also the developer behind The Gates of Prosper a major regional shopping area. On the industrial / commercial side Blue Star Land purchased Star Business Park off Rockhill and Preston in Frisco which is home to a new merchandise distribution center for the Dallas Cowboys along with The Star in Frisco.  In 2015, Jones opened Blue Star Payment Solutions with the goal of offering first-class merchant services.  Lastly, it is rumored that Jones is an avid art collector and his rare collection includes a few Picassos,  Renoir, Matisse, and Norman Rockwall’s “Coin Toss.”  At 80 years old Forbes estimates his net worth to be around $13 Billion.  Not bad for a kid who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and played football in college for the Arkansas Razorbacks. 

In 1989, Hank Williams reworked his country-rock song to include the catchphrase “are you ready for some football!”  The catchy phrase soon became an NFL viewing tradition at the opening of Monday Night Football.  Well Sports City USA was ready for some football! Frisco was ready for a seat at the table in 2013, when Stephen Jones, CEO of the Dallas Cowboys realized it was time to move because the team had outgrown the Valley Ranch facility they had called home since 1985. So, how did the Cowboys end up coming to Frisco? 

There are several variations to the story depending on whom you ask.  What we have heard is two men, Rex Glendenning and Matthew Kiran of Rex Real Estate had a longtime relationship with Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys.  It is believed Rex Real Estate helped Jerry Jones’ companies like Blue Star Land buy up land in Denton and Colin County for years. A Dallas Morning News article in February of 2023 called Rex Glendenning the “king of land sales” in North Texas’ fastest-growing communities. Rex Glendenning and Matthew Kiran attended a meeting at Valley Ranch and learned the Cowboys were quietly looking for a new home.  On a drive back from Valley Ranch The Rex Real Estate duo had an epiphany as they crossed 121 and looked at each other and said this is where the future “Gridiron” Cowboys project needs to be.  Made sense the City of Frisco owned 91 acres just off the Tollway and they knew the city had no plans after the negotiations fell apart in the “Red Zone” with Nebraska Furniture Mart.  It was time for the Wildcat play which is where the quarterback lines up as the wide receiver and the running back take the snap from the center.  The Rex Real Estate team made their pitch to Jim Gandy, President of the Frisco Economic Development Corporation.  The Super Bowl moment came late in 2013 when the parties reached an agreement and America’s Team officially announced Frisco’s Sports City USA would be their new home.

The 91-acre mixed-use project included 66 acres of retail, a 5-acre headquarters, a 20-acre multi-use event center, and a hotel. In the deal, the city pledged $60 million and would retain ownership of the indoor stadium and Frisco ISD contributed $30 million.  The final price tag for the total Ford Center was more than $263 million.  Talk about a “win-win” for Frisco, Texas when five years later The Star celebrated its grand opening with the pomp and circumstance befitting of the one and only Jerry Jones.

As usual, we were curious about the play clock (aka timeline) of the project compared to any campaign contributions received by those on the council. We reviewed the campaign finance reports which are public records on the City of Frisco’s website. 

August 12, 2013: Frisco CDC, City Council, and Frisco EDC approve The Star

2016: Ford Center @ The Star has Grand Opening

May 11, 2017:  Cheney receives a $10,000 campaign contribution from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate)

August 22, 2017: P&Z Approves 12 Cowboys Way

What is 12 Cowboys Way?  It is a joint venture between  Jerry Jones and Dallas developer Columbus Realty which is owned by former players Roger Staubach and Robert Shaw.  The stunning architecture of the 17-story luxury residential tower, the first of its kind in Frisco, will have 160 urban units where rent begins at $2700 per month.  Amenities include 24-hour concierge service, covered parking, dog park and dog wash, valet parking, grocery delivery service, and dry-cleaning service.  Not to mention discounts at restaurants at The Star and a Cowboys Club membership. 

September 9, 2017: City Council Approves 12 Cowboys Way

January 25, 2018: Mayor Cheney receives a $1000 campaign contribution from Matthew Kiran and $2500 from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate Team)

March 5, 2018: Mayor Cheney receives a $500 campaign contribution from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate)

March 5, 2018:  Councilman John Keating receives a $500 campaign contribution from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate)

April 6, 2018: Councilman Keating receives $2500 from Jim Williams (LandPlan – Founder)

Who is Jim Williams?  Williams played football with Jerry and Jimmy at Walton College. His partner Bruce Smith was Vice President & General Manager of Blue Star Land (Jerry Jones company). 

May 6, 2018: Councilman Keating receives (2) two $1000 donations from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate)

August 2018: City Council Approves Cowboys 400,000 Sq Ft. Dallas Cowboys Merchandising  Distribution Center

**The city approved a 50 percent ad valorem tax grant and a 50 percent sales tax grant for a 10-year period.

February 19, 2019: City Council Approves Cowboys Land Deal – Office Building

**Make a mental note of this one because it will be important later.

March 7, 2019: Councilman Keating receives a $2500 campaign contribution from Jim Williams (LandPlan – Founder)

March 19, 2019: Mayor Cheney receives two campaign contributions, one for $2500, the second for $100 from Jim Williams (LandPlan – Founder)

October 17, 2019: Mayor Cheney receives a $1000 campaign contribution from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate)

January 30, 2020: Mayor Cheney receives a $2500 campaign contribution from Robert Shaw and $1000 from Richard Reupke

Who is Robert Shaw and Richard Reupke?  Shaw is also a Managing Partner of Columbus Realty Partners and he was a first-round draft pick for the Dallas Cowboys in 1979 where he played for three years.  Reupke is a partner and Chief Financial Officer at Columbus Realty Partners.  Both are advisors for Staubach Capital (12 Cowboys Way). 

2020: Robert Cox then Planning & Zoning Commissioner running for Council received $350 from Kiran and $1000 from Hickman

January 25, 2021: Angelia Pelham received a $3000 campaign contribution from Jim Williams (LandPlan – Founder)

In the movie Jerry Maguire, Rod Tidwell played by Cuba Gooding, Jr., is not thrilled with his agent’s performance so he wants his agent Jerry to convince him to stay on as a client.  Jerry asks what he can do to convince him, and Rod said, “Show me the money.”  He then made Jerry repeat it over and over, louder, and louder until everyone in the office had thought Jerry lost his mind.  If only it were as simple as it appears in the movies.  The investigative process is a progression of activities or steps moving from evidence-gathering tasks to information analysis, to theory development and validation.  The goal is to form a reasonable belief based on the evidence in front of you.  The truth is we are not professionals, so we lack the expertise of real investigators but as we said before we are smart enough to follow the yellow brick road. 

First, we looked for donations that occurred within a few months of a vote.  For example, Cheney received $10,000 dollars from Rex Glendenning (Rex Real Estate) roughly 3 months before the P&Z vote in August 2017 and 4 months before the City Council approved the 12 Cowboys Way project in September 2017.  Then about 3 ½ months after the vote, he received another $2500 from Glendenning and $1000 from his partner Kiran.  Depending on the lens someone is looking through the timing could look fine, or it could look like a pay-2-play situation.  Cheney just won the election, so he is not campaigning anymore. Why when there is a project coming before the council did they decide to donate?   Glendenning also donated $1000 in October 2019 but that was not in close proximity to a vote.

In February 2019, the council voted to approve the land deal with Blue Star. Then exactly one month later Williams who has a clear connection to Jones made two donations on the same day to Cheney’s campaign.  The first was for $2500 and the second for $1000.  To those with basic common sense, again the timing of one month looks bad and now we are seeing similar things between different developments.

Keating also received donations from players in these projects.  In March 2018, Glendenning donated $500, and then in May 2018, he made two donations each for $1000 on the same day.  In April 2018, Williams also donated $2500 to Keating’s campaign. The vote for the Blue Star distribution center was not until August 2018 so one could argue there is enough time between the last donation and the actual vote.  However, with a total of $5000 in donations three months before the vote we would argue something doesn’t smell right in Frisco.

Angelia Pelham one of the newest members of the council also received a $3000 donation from Jim Williams in January 2021.  This donation occurred during her campaign and looks completely justifiable as she was not able to vote at the time for any projects.  From our perspective, Cheney needed Pelham on the council because she would vote on future projects with Cheney whereas the other candidate would not have been so easy to win over.  It is also interesting that Pelham who was sworn in on June 15, 2021, became Deputy Mayor Pro Tem so quickly when other council members like Livingston, Woodard, or Keating have years of experience on the council.  In that position, it is her job to stand in for the mayor when they are unable to chair a council meeting or attend an event.  A few more years of experience under her belt on council would make more sense but we can only assume Cheney needed her as his right hand.

What we found interesting is that going back through both Cheney and Keating campaign reports to 2013 we could not find any other previous contributions from these donors, so why now?  Patterns are predictable repetitions that repeat at least once or twice or occur repeatedly at regular intervals.  The legal definition for the pattern of behavior means behavior by one party in a relationship that is used to establish power and control over another person.  One could argue that when you are the mayor you have a lot of power and control to get things done. We are not accusing anyone of doing something illegal but, it is our opinion that there is at least a reoccurring appearance of improprieties and if perception can be the reality then that would not bode well for either of men.